Portland Press Herald - 'Fusion' adds to security at border

'Fusion' adds to security at border
By BART JANSEN, Washington D.C. Correspondent Portland Press Herald Monday, October 16, 2006

WASHINGTON - When the federal Border Patrol needed help keeping an eye on Maine's remote Boundary Mountains around the time of the last presidential election, state police, game wardens and local police filled the bill.
The program, Operation Stonegarden, illustrated how local, state and federal agencies strived for cooperation in bolstering homeland security after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. State officials hope to continue the program, supported by federal grants.

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The program is now operating in 43 states. Maine hired its second staffer about three months ago for the state's fusion center in Augusta.

Last month, Democrats on the U.S. House of Representatives' Homeland Security Committee issued a report that criticized the lack of information-sharing among federal, state and local law enforcement officials. The report called for seven initiatives, including better coordination for border security.

"We are long overdue in providing police and sheriff's officers with the basic information they need to take on the critical homeland security role that they, the 9/11 Commission and others have identified for them," said Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, the committee's top Democrat.

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